Do you want to receive assistance or legal advice on international child abduction abroad? You can contact Criminal Lawyer H24 who will guarantee you the assistance of an expert and specialized Italian Hague Abduction Convention Lawyer and, in general, for all cases of international child abduction abroad.
Was a child stolen from the other parent without his consent?
Has it been transferred abroad or, worse, you don’t know where he is?
Do you want to obtain immediate repatriation or the right to visit the child and you don’t know what to do and who can you contact?
In this article I will explain what to do in the event of international child abduction and what is the procedure to be implemented in order to better protect the interests of the child illegally detained abroad.
Well, that relating to the protection of children’s rights is an ever current and delicate issue and, for these reasons, many States have adopted international conventions and treaties in order to guarantee the most important interest of the child.
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WHAT THE HAGUE ABDUCTION CONVENTION IS ?
The Hague Abduction Convention is one of these international agreements and, in the case of international child abduction, it is possible to apply this procedure in order to obtain the repatriation of the child or to enjoy, at least, the right to visit him.
If you want to be immediately contacted or if you want to receive further information on the topic contact Hague Abduction Convention Lawyer will answer 24/7.
The Hague Abduction Convention, signed on 25.10.1980, is a document with which the signatory States aim to protect the child, internationally, against the harmful effects of his transfer or illegal detention abroad.
It establishes procedures aimed at ensuring the child’s immediate return to their country of habitual residence, as well as guaranteeing the protection of the right of visit him.
WHEN DOES THE CONVENTION APPLY?
The Convention cannot always be applied: the law, in fact, establishes certain cases in which an appeal can be made to the Hague Abduction Convention.
The Convention, as required by the document, applies to every child who had his habitual residence in a contracting State immediately before the violation of custody or visitation rights.
The application of the Convention can not be applied when the child turns 16.
WHAT IS THE HAGUE ABDUCTION CONVENTION FOR?
The Hague Abduction Convention aims to:
a) ensure the immediate return of child illegally transferred or detained to any contracting State;
b) ensure that the rights of entrustment and visitation provided for in one contracting State are effectively respected in the other contracting States.
Article 1 Convention
The “custody right” includes the rights concerning the care of the child, and in particular the right to decide on his place of residence
while
the “right of visit” includes the right to take the child to a place other than his usual residence for a limited period of time.
WHEN THE TRANSFER OR NON-RETURN OF THE CHILD IS REGARDED UNLAWFUL?
In order to activate the Hague Abduction Convention, the transfer or non-return of the child must be considered illegal.
The Convention establishes when such types of behavior must be considered illegal:
a) when it occurs in violation of the custody rights assigned to a person, institution or any other entity, jointly or individually, based on the legislation of the State in which the minor had his habitual residence immediately before his transfer or non-return
and:
b) if these rights are effectively exercised, individually or jointly, at the time of the transfer of the child or of his non-return, or they could have been if the circumstances had not occurred.
The custody right referred to in paragraph a) above may in particular derive directly from the law, from a judicial or administrative decision, or from an agreement in force under the legislation of the State.
HOW IS THE CONVENTION ACTIVATED?
The ‘Central Authorities’ that have been established in all the signatory States of the Convention where the child has been transferred, take care of taking charge of the request for international protection of the child and then obtaining his repatriation.
The Central Authorities of the different States must cooperate with each other in order to ensure the prompt repatriation of the child.
Once the agreement is activated, the procedure takes place in the following ways:
–> the child is located;
–> provisional measures are taken to prevent the child from being prejudiced;
–> the friendly settlement of the dispute is sought by ensuring the voluntary surrender of the child;
–> if necessary, a judicial procedure is initiated in order to obtain repatriation;
–> A mutual exchange of information takes place between the various Central Authorities in order to allow the prompt repatriation of the child.
The Agreement is activated by forwarding the related application to the Central Authorities.
HOW TO SUBMIT THE REQUEST?
The application must contain information relating to the identification of the child and as much information as possible on:
–> the location of the child;
–> the family situation as well as the indication of the child’s habitual residence;
–> any measures taken by the justice relating to the relationship between married spouses or de facto spouses.
The judicial or administrative authorities must immediately take appropriate measures in order to obtain the repatriation of the minor.
CAN REPATRIATION BE REFUSED?
Yes.
The judicial or administrative authority of the State to which repatriation is requested, can refuse this request when there are reasons that prevent the repatriation.
These impeding reasons can be:
–> that the person, institution or body to which the minor was entrusted did not actually exercise the right of custody at the time of the transfer or of the non-return, or had allowed, even afterwards, the transfer or the non-return;
–> that there is a well-founded risk for the child to be exposed, due to the fact of his return, to physical and mental dangers, or in any case to find himself in an intolerable situation;
–> if it is ascertained that the child opposes the return, and that he has reached an age and a degree of maturity such that his opinion should be taken into account.
WHAT DOES THE CONVENTION PROVIDE WITH REGARD TO THE RIGHT OF VISIT?
The request for the right of visit can be sent to the Central Authorities in the same way as that required to obtain the repatriation of the child.
The Central Authorities also collaborate in the same way for the protection of the child’s right to visit.
WHY REFER TO AN ITALIAN HAGUE ABDUCTION CONVENTION LAWYER?
Up to now we have retraced, in the salient parts, what is foreseen by the Hague Abduction Convention and, therefore, how to provide the necessary protection to the child in the State where transferred: this in order to guarantee the repatriation of the child and / or the right of visit of the same.
As you will have understood, it is a complex procedure that requires specific skills, namely:
–> knowledge of the Convention in all its aspects;
–> knowledge of the relative procedures for forwarding the request;
–> knowledge of the foreign language;
–> knowledge of family law legislation.
WHY CONTACT US ?
To this end, it is advisable to contact an Italian Hague Abduction Convention lawyer to better suit the interests of the child and, therefore, to obtain immediate repatriation or the right to visit the child as provided by the Convention.
Our law firm Criminal Lawyer H24 have gained some experience in dealing with cases of international child abduction; both before the national and international judicial authorities and therefore we know the procedure in all its aspects.
The Hague Abduction Convention is one of these international agreements and, in the case of international child abduction, it is possible to apply this procedure in order to obtain the repatriation of the child or to enjoy, at least, the right to visit him.
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